Onions for England?

Since my last blog the county season has started in glorious sunshine, before the one week of summer predictably gave way. However, in between the rain delays and the breaks for bad light (play at Headingly stopped in the gloom at lunch today) it has been interesting to watch the England hopefuls in actions as the West Indies play their warm up games before the summer starts in earnest.

Of those all but guaranteed a place for the first Test, Strauss and Cook have impressed. Cook batted through the pain for a quality 74* against the Windies and looked both well set and (more importantly) free flowing. His discomfort at the crease on pitches that most batsmen would like to roll up and carry with them in West Indies was concerning, but if his hand is fully healed then he looks in good nick coming into the international summer. Captain Andrew Strauss continued the form his form from the Caribbean against Leicestershire with 150 and if these two can work well together at the top of the order England will have a strong platform against any opposition.

In the bowling department, Anderson and Swann both took wickets in the first games of the County Championship, and for Swann in particular (who is recovering from elbow surgery) this will boost his confidence tremendously. After working so hard to earn his place in the Test team the injury could have lost him his place if he hadn't immediately reasserted himself. Anderson showed all the qualities required to spearhead England's attack on swinging pitches while his likely opening partner Stuart Broad took 7 wickets and scored a quickfire 60 against Worcestershire to immediately find his feet with both bat and ball and with Flintoff out for the series against the West Indies any runs he can add will be useful in an extended tail.

Perhaps of more interest however are those looking to either hold onto their places or reassert themselves on the international scene. Of the three main competitors for the number 3 slot Ian Bell has started the best by a distance. With two centuries in a week (one in each form of the game) and a grim determination to his training Bell has pushed himself to the front of the queue for this key position. Ravi Bopara has impressed in the IPL but given the change of format is unlikely to earn a Test place, while Owais Shah has failed to set the world alight in South Africa. As a result, Bell looks favourite to be recalled.

The only other player in the frame for this position is former captain Michael Vaughan. He has managed to make impressive starts thus far, but as yet has only converted once, to score 82 in the Friend's Provident Trophy against Sussex. There is no doubt that he will be more frustrated than most by the rain which arrived in Leeds this lunchtime, just as he took to the crease.
Vaughan's duel with other possible series outcast Steve Harmison in the season curtain raiser drew a large amount of interest, simply to see how these two players who have both topped the ICC rankings in their respective fields at one time would assert themselves ahead of the Ashes summer. Harmison picked up the wicket of his former skipper as one of his 4 first innings scalps but was expensive and unimpressive but as it seems his star falls once more, his county team mate caught the eye.

Graeme Onions has been a steady county bowler for a few seasons, and with his colleague Phil Mustard has been something of a tabloid dream. However, his performance against Yorkshire taking 8 wickets in the match (including an impressive 5 for 56) caught the eye of former of England captain Michael Atherton who suggested that Onions may be in line for a squad call up, possibly at Harmison's expense. With decent pace and excellent control, Onions may be the shock face to terrorise the West Indians and, who knows the Australians later this summer.
Having spent so long in the shadow of Harmison, Plunkett and even current England bowling coach Otis Gibson (who may well push for his former teamate come selection time) at Durham this could be Onions' chance to shine.

Of the wicket keepers Prior has managed a 50 in the FP Trophy but failed spectacularly against Lancashire in the four day game, while Foster looked solid against the West Indies for Essex before rain robbed him of a potentially big score which could have secured international places. Tim Ambrose managed an early 150, but runs have never been hard to come by for him in county cricket so he may still be overlooked as international first choice.

Finally, to pick another player who has avoided a lot of attention James Hildreth hit a superb 303* against Warwickshire on an admittedly batter-friendly surface and if he can put together a few more big scores he may snatch a squad place, although it is hugely unlikely he will wrest a middle order spot from Collingwood or Pieterson he may be an outside bet for a ODI spot. Either way, with squad selection just around the corner there are plenty of players who need to press their claims with big performances in the next few days unless they want to risk being out in the cold this summer.